Formed in September of 1999 by vocalist Daisuke (ex-Fatima) and bassist Masaya, and joined soon thereafter by Yuana, a quirky guitarist with wild musical skills. Daisuke selected the name "kagerou", which means "mayfly", referencing a heart condition he'd had since he was an infant. Adult mayflies have lifespans of a mere twenty-four hours, and Daisuke related through the band's name that his own lifespan could be a short one.
Activity for the band started slowly as Masaya continued to participate in his band Angel Dust while playing for kagerou. By December, Masaya agreed to leave his former band and focus solely on kagerou. The band held their first live just two months later on February 13, 2000 at Ikebukuro CYBER, where they distributed the single Biological Sliver. In May of that year, kagerou greeted their new drummer Shizumi, who became a permanent member.
During the next year, kagerou flourished but by October, Masaya announced his intention to leave the band to join Kar'Maria, and quit shortly after kagerou's first one-man on October 11th. During this period, the band went on hiatus while searching for a new bassist. They did not have to look long before they found Kuya, and once again the band resumed activity.
In the spring of 2001, the band opened their official fanclub, kagerou Tsuushin Kouza but more bad news struck the band when Kuya left in August, leaving them once again stranded without a bassist. The band continued with normal live activities through the fall, and soon recruited Kazu of ex-Aioria. With this new lineup, kagerou had finally created its famous four. In December of that year, kagerou and MUCC held a four date coupling tour, shortly before the debut of the maxi single Iro Megane to Scandal on January 9, 2002.
2002 proved to be a packed year for kagerou, and their live schedule went into full swing after a score of in-stores on February 3rd at Akasaka BLITZ. The band continued to perform straight through the spring and into the summer, when they had a double maxi single release on July 10th. The band embarked on a tour through the remainder of the summer before releasing their first DVD in September.
kagerou welcomed the new year with not only a new single, Kakokei Shinjitsu, but a fifteen date tour which preceeded their first self-titled album and a new single in the summer. Fans noticed musical differences in the compositions for kagerou's newest releases, but the change was a welcomed one. The band continued their heavy touring schedule through the fall, mixing fan club and public events together
With the release of XII Dizzy in the beginning of 2004, kagerou started the year off on the right foot with a long tour that ran straight until April. Taking a well deserved break through the summer, the band debuted their second album, Rakushu in August, before hitting the road once more.
kagerou barely took a breather before traveling to Europe in February 2005 for their first overseas tour, visiting Germany and France during their two day tour. By May, the band was headed back to Germany and appeared at the Rock im Park event, before returning to Japan to see the release of their third album just two days before their summer tour. In October, the band wrapped up the year on a coupling tour with D'espairsRay, which took them jetting across Japan and throughout Europe during October.
In 2006, kagerou kick started the year with a performance at Shibuya-AX, but their concert schedule was sparse in comparison to previous years, with only a few shows spread across each month. The summer brought the debut of a new single and their fourth album, before the band started their fall public and fan club only tours. At the tour final on September 16th at LIQUIDROOM Ebisu, fans were devastated with the news that kagerou intended to disband at the beginning of 2007.
The band began to say their goodbyes in December, traveling to Europe for two final tours before they performed their last live on January 8th, 2007. Within two months the band put out not only a best of album, entitled Shinjuka, but a final DVD which contained footage from their last live.
Although it has been many years since kagerou's disbandment, their impact on the visual kei scene was so strong that many fans still feel a connection and continue to feel their loss. However, with Daisuke's recent activity with the studs and Yuana in boogieman, the members have proved that kagerou will live on.
